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Head west on California Zephyr and bring binoculars. Amtrak says the journey out of Chicago, Illinois to San Francisco, California is one of America's most scenic train rides, and many travelers echo that sentiment. Alternatively, take a scenic journey on a long-distance Amtrak train from America's Second City to another West Coast destination. Empire Builder takes passengers to Seattle, Washington or Portland, Oregon, and Southwest Chief travels daily to Los Angeles, California. Travelers can also head east to Washington, D.C. via Amtrak's Capitol Limited.

Amtrak's Superliner Trains

Serving long-distance routes from Chicago, the Superliner train's best daytime views are from upper level seats and lounges, and the best overnight rest is in a roomette for one or two people or a larger bedroom. Families of up to four can book a bedroom in the lower level sleeping car with two picture windows, two adult-sized and two child-sized berths. Breakfast and dinner, two checked bags per person and Wi-Fi are included, as well as comfort niceties such as attendants, turn-down service, proper showers, shampoo and clean towels.

California Zephyr

As though inspired by the lyrics of "America, the Beautiful," California Zephyr leaves the Windy City's skyscrapers to encounter spacious skies under amber waves of grain before reaching the majesty of purple mountains. The 2,447-mile route traverses the Great Plains, Rocky Mountains and Sierra Nevadas into sunny California, passing landscapes and landforms that cars cannot access as it travels through seven states and across two time zones in 52 hours. Cities along the way include: Omaha, Nebraska; Denver, Colorado; Salt Lake City, Utah; Reno, Nevada and Sacramento, California. The final leg from Emeryville (between Berkeley and Oakland, California) into San Francisco is dramatic, too. An Amtrak Thruway bus transfers passengers over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge right into the heart of downtown.

Empire Builder

Early 19th century explorers Lewis and Clark traveled by foot, on horseback and by boat. However, 21st century travelers can trace much of their pioneering route via a far more comfortable train experience. Amtrak's long-distance trip from Chicago to Seattle covers 2,206 miles in about 46 hours or 2,257 miles from Chicago to Portland, Oregon in similar time. Passengers are treated to views of the mighty Mississippi and Missouri rivers, the lights of twin cities St. Paul-Minneapolis by night, plenty of Big Sky country, a look at Glacier National Park and a crossing over the Continental Divide. From Spokane, Washington, the Pacific Northwest route splits in two, heading north for Seattle or south toward Portland with views of the Columbia River Gorge and year-round, snow-capped Mount Hood.

Southwest Chief

For folks who are not in a hurry to get to LA, Amtrak's Southwest Chief makes the 2,256-mile trip in 43 hours. On an eight-state route across America's vast West with a southern approach, the train crosses the Mississippi River en route to Kansas City. Afterwards, it's "wheat fields and ranches, missions and pueblos, mountains and deserts," as seen in Amtrak's description. On the way to stops in Albuquerque and Flagstaff, New Mexico, there are winding passes through tight canyons and painted landscapes that no automobile traveler has ever seen from an interstate highway.

Capitol Limited

Not the fastest option but certainly a mini-adventure, go from Union Station to Union Station with good-sized chunks of historic Americana in-between. Railroad buffs appreciate that the train runs on the old B&O tracks, the nation's oldest section still in operation, and that the train stops at the nation's oldest station still in use in Martinsburg, West Virginia. Amtrak's double-decker Superliner Capitol Limited makes a daily overnight trip from Chicago to Washington, D.C. in 18 hours, arriving in early afternoon. The 764-mile journey incorporates 14 stops as it passes through farms in the heartland, over the Allegheny Mountains and into the scenic Potomac Valley.

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About the Author

Based in San Francisco, Laurie Jo Miller Farr is career-long destination and hotel marketing specialist. She contributes to CBS Travel, Where, Frommers, Foodie Travel USA and We Blog the World. She is editor of The Travel Vertical, a weekly newsletter for digital travel marketers. A former tourism director for NYC, Laurie Jo is a dual UK/US citizen who covered the 2012 London Olympics for "Best of Britain" and received the 2013 Yahoo Contributor of the Year Award.

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